Geosynthetics February/March 2023 - 34

INDUSTRY NEWS
GEO NEWS AND NOTES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
Leggett & Platt subsidiaries
announce acquisitions
Hanes Geo Components, a whollyowned
subsidiary of Leggett & Platt,
Inc. has reached an agreement to acquire
the majority of the business and assets of
Edmonton, Alta., Canada-based Nilex
Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary
Nilex USA Inc. with a view to continue
to operate Nilex's business on a goingconcern
basis. Under the proposed
agreement, Nilex's Canadian operations
will be consolidated under Terrafix
Geosynthetics, Inc. The transaction is
subject to court approval in Canada
and the U.S. Nilex's U.S. operations
will be consolidated under Hanes Geo
Components, strengthening both companies'
ability to service the Colorado
and Utah markets. Founded in the 1970s,
Terrafix and Nilex were both pioneers in
the distribution of geosynthetic materials.
Terrafix Geosynthetics, a wholly
owned subsidiary of Leggett and Platt,
has acquired Ottawa, Ont., Canada-based
Geosynthetics Systems. Geosynthetic
Systems specializes in the distribution of
products used for erosion and sediment
control, drainage and stormwater management,
construction, gabion systems,
engineered walls and landscaping.
E Squared expanding
production, warehousing
and distribution
E Squared, a leader in the development
and manufacture of high-performance
coated fabrics, film sheeting and technical
textiles, has announced a major
expansion of its production, warehousing
and distribution capabilities.
Ronald Mark Associates, Inc., along with
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin,
34
Geosynthetics | February March 2023
have announced a $13.5 million investment
in a manufacturing facility
located in Bluefield, Va. The Ronald
Mark family of companies is made up
of Flex Membrane International Corp.,
E Squared Technical Textiles and Kinon
Surface Design Inc. This investment
will provide E Squared with much
needed manufacturing and warehouse
capacity that will support its growth. E
Squared was established in June 2019
as a joint venture between Engineered
Polymer Technologies (EPT), a division
of Ronald Mark Associates, and Erez
Technical Textiles.
USDOT announces FHWA
executive director
The U.S. Department of Transportation
(USDOT) has selected Gloria Shepherd
as the executive director of the Federal
Highway Administration (FHWA), the
11th person to hold this position since
FHWA's founding in 1971. When she
assumes her new role, she will be the first
woman and the first African American in
FHWA's history to do so. Shepherd brings
more than 23 years of extensive and varied
experience with FHWA, in which she has
a track record of success and a proven
ability to produce results, develop effective
national partnerships and coalitions, and
open doors through her mentorship for
future leaders within DOT.
AASHTO elects 2022-2023
president, vice president
The board of directors of the American
Association of State Highway and Transportation
Officials AASHTO has elected
Roger Millar, secretary of the Washington
State Department of Transportation,
as its 2022-2023 president. The board
also elected Paul Ajegba, director of the
Michigan Department of Transportation,
as its 2022-2023 vice president. " To be
entrusted with this national leadership
role at a time of great transformation is an
incredible honor and responsibility, " Millar
said. " As president, I will use resilience
as a lens to view and define what a safe,
sound, and smart multimodal transportation
system is. This systemic approach
ensures that state DOTs have the tools,
resources, and systems needed to reduce
highway crashes and fatalities, advance
equity and accessibility, and improve
mobility for all users. "
TRB names executive director
The National Academies of Sciences,
Engineering and Medicine ha s
announced that Victoria Sheehan joined
the organization as the new executive
director of the Transportation Research
Board (TRB). Sheehan will succeed
Neil Pedersen, who has served as TRB's
executive director for nearly eight
years. Sheehan comes to the National
Academies from the New Hampshire
Department of Transportation (DOT),
which she has led as its commissioner
for the past seven years. Responsible for
an operating budget of more than $650
million, she oversees a staff of more than
1,600 employees representing diverse
areas such as aeronautics, rail, transit,
construction, operations, finance, and
administration. Her team led the development
of New Hampshire's 10-Year
Transportation Plan, and Sheehan
worked directly with the governor,
general court, and executive council to
ensure it would address the state's growing
needs.
Geosynthetics February/March 2023

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